


Dark Hearts

by RetroRoy199X



Category: Compilation of Final Fantasy VII, Kingdom Hearts (Video Games)
Genre: Alternate Universe - 2000s, Alternate Universe - Horror, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Vampire, Cringe, Cross-Posted on FanFiction.Net, Dracula Influence/References, Drama & Romance, Dramedy, Gothic, Horror, Mages, Multi, Occult, Vampires, Werewolves, Witches, cringe comedy
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-09
Updated: 2020-12-17
Packaged: 2021-03-06 20:20:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 14
Words: 16,661
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26374852
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RetroRoy199X/pseuds/RetroRoy199X
Summary: AU. The legendary vampire Count Dracula was once a heroic knight named Sephiroth before he fell into darkness and damnation.Five and a half centuries later, in the year 2005 AD, Dracula travels to the United States to find his last remaining mortal descendant, a young man named Riku, and fulfill their destinies.A bizarre hybrid of Gothic Horror, Cringe Comedy, Parody, and Dramedy
Relationships: Aerith Gainsborough/Sephiroth, Axel & Roxas & Xion (Kingdom Hearts), Kairi/Riku/Sora (Kingdom Hearts)
Comments: 80
Kudos: 9





	1. Introduction

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Aurilyn](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aurilyn/gifts), [Josh89](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Josh89/gifts), [hashtag_anthems](https://archiveofourown.org/users/hashtag_anthems/gifts).



> Re-posting this after accidentally deleting this.

_Do you know the story of Dracula? Do you remember the great legend? Of the tragic knight who lived far away in the old lands of Transylvania in the far side of Romania? It is a story of tragic romance, foreboding horror, revenge, and love from beyond the grave and across oceans of time..._

_It was long ago and far away when the great and heroic knight Vladislav Sephiroth had fallen from grace and became the monster known as Dracula. Nobody quite knows the full story of the how and the why, other than the fact that it happened after the unfortunate demise of his lover Aerith Gainsborough, a serene and beautiful princess._

_The legend goes that Lord Sephiroth led the knights and merry men of The Order of The Dragon on crusade against heathen marauders and had been gone for many years and Aerith waited for him to return. But when she saw some kind of ominous sign in the stars, she believed her lover had been killed in battle and took her own life by drowning herself in the cold deep waters of the River Danube at sunrise._

_Sometime after Aerith took her own life on that fateful cold and frosty morning, her beloved prince had become utterly destroyed inside and locked himself away in his castle. After forty days and forty nights of grieving while locked away in the castle manor, Sephiroth reemerged as an entirely new and unknown creature. He was no longer a knight but a monster who wore the face of a dead man. Kindred. Damned. A vampire._

_Lord Vladislav Sephiroth was now dead from that point on. From now on, he would forever be known as Count Dracula._

_Becoming a vampire was advantageous for Dracula and he spent the next several centuries gaining power, wealth, and influence. He studied deep and secret occult lore, learned ancient and mystical rituals, and dreamed of one day finding a way to be reunited with his lost love and hoped one day they could be reunited..._

_Over five hundred years after Sephiroth had become Dracula, way back in the early years of the 21st Century, the vampire nobleman had traveled to the New World in search of the survivors of his old aristocratic lineage. Eventually, he had found what he was looking for..._


	2. Good News, Bad News

**Martin Hollow**

**Dickenson County, Virginia**

**March 2005**

It was a lovely springtime morning no different than any other, cliche as that may sound. The sun was shining bright, the sky was clear, and the weather was calm and mild. God was in Heaven, the Pope was in Rome, the President was in Washington DC, and the Governor was in Richmond. But Riku was in Trammel, so to Hell with all them!

The young man was twenty-one years old and living a quiet life with his two lovers Sora and Kairi on a small patch of land his family owned way out in the middle of nowhere. The three had known each other since they were young and had grown up together as friends. There was sort of a special bond between the three of them, and when they became older they had decided to become a couple or trio, as it were. Now they weren't swingers or crazy party animals, mind you. They just felt it was easier for the three of them be in a relationship together given their unique situation. Since Riku's family owned a small bit of land in rural southwestern Virginia where the cost of living was relatively cheap compared to the suburbs, the three had a place they could live on their own fairly cheaply and in the serene quiet of the woods.

But living out in the Appalachian backwoods surrounded by hillbillies meant they had to be a little more covert about their relationship and the unconventional living arrangements. As such, it meant that Riku and Kairi had to get legally married and if anyone asked, Sora was merely a tenant who paid a share of the bills and did work around the house and always took care of the yard too.

Really, it was a beautiful and peaceful afternoon in the early spring. The weather was warming up but it was still too early in the year for the flowers and trees to really start blooming so you still had the trees be little more than bare sticks. But the sky was clear and the sun really was bright. Riku was heading home from work and had stopped by the post office to get the mail while Kairi and Sora were just sitting on the soft blue couch set up in their living room and watching some reruns of Malcolm In The Middle as they waited for Riku to finally get home from work and they could all have dinner together

The spiky-haired brunette had cuddled up with Kairi, his head laying on the red-haired woman's shoulder as he struggled to stay awake after spending all day clearing a large patch of ground and tilling the soil for the vegetable garden they wanted to start this year. Even after taking a hot shower and drinking a tall glass of sweet tea he was still having trouble trying to keep himself from passing out then and there.

"Kairi..when is Riku gonna get here?"

"He hasn't been gone that long. Unless he got stuck in traffic or something, he should be here around the same time he usually does. It'll be alright. If you need to take a nap, just lie down and get some sleep."

"But I'm not tired!"

"Yes, you're not tired. And I'm the Prime Minister of Norway! Come on, Sora. You're not fooling anyone here on this one!"

While Kairi was sitting and relaxing on the couch and Sora struggled to stay awake, they were then greeted with the sound of a car pulling into the dusty gravel driveway and a familiar pair of shoes stepping out of the car once it parked.

"Wake up, Riku's here!"

A fit silver-haired young man made his way through the door, taking off his shoes and hanging up his coat in the hallway as he made his way through the kitchen to meet up with his boyfriend and girlfriend.

"I'm home. How have you two been holding up today?"

"Pretty good. Sora did some work for our garden this year. He's tired as fuck but he still refuses to get some rest."

"I told you, I'm not tired!" said Sora yawning loudly.

"Well, I got the mail today. Apparently we got a lot. Lemme check and see what all we have..."

Riku immediately set a bag full of envelopes and catalogs on the kitchen table and began to sort through them all.

"Let's see...bank statement, Direct TV bill, junk mail...Kairi, here's your newest issue of Game Informer magazine and the Lane Bryant catalog and Sora, here's your Victoria's Secret catalog for the month."

"Ugh, you buy one set of bra and panties for Kairi's birthday and you're on their mailing list forever!"

"Sora, you didn't just buy the set I wanted. You also bought a thong, a pair of stockings, a corset, and a bunch of lipstick."

"Hey! It was for my Halloween costume that year! I was a sexy version of Dr. Frank-N-Furter from Rocky Horror! Don't you judge me, Kairi! At least I didn't dress up as Ilsa, She-Wolf of the SS that year!"

"Okay, fair point. You got me on that one. I found out the hard way that dressing up as a sweet transvestite offends a lot less people than dressing up as a BDSM-themed Nazi war criminal from a trashy 70's B-movie."

"You guys are both insane. At least I had enough common sense to dress up as Batman that year. Nobody ever gets pissed off at someone wearing a Batman costume!"

"True. But I think the guests at that party cringed a lot more at your god-awful Adam West impression than they did at Sora in a thong or me dressed up like a Nazi soldier."

"Look, we all made mistakes that night. No need to bring up the past or anything...oh no."

Riku had picked up the last piece of mail and looked at it closely. It was addressed to him and judging by the looks of things, it could not have been good news at all.

"A black-bordered envelope? Oh no! Someone you know must have died."

"I hope it's the New England Patriots. Those guys suck! Especially that dick Tom Brady! Damn furry bastard who cheats at football!"

"Sora. This is not the time to be cracking jokes. A member of Riku's family is dead."

Opening the envelope, Riku then closely read the letter. One of his few living relatives was now no more and had ceased to be.

"Oh no! My dear old Uncle Vladimir died!"

"Aww, that's terrible. Wasn't he like your only remaining relative in your extended family?"

"Yeah. It says he died of unexpected blood loss in the middle of the night. Was found dead right there in his bed. The letter also says that I'm also invited to his funeral along with my wife and one other guest and there will be a reading of his will."

"Oh. I'm sorry for your loss. Wasn't Vladimir the really wealthy uncle who had stocks in Amazon and Microsoft and had the huge luxurious mansion with the large indoor pool and hot tub plus an indoor arcade, a Rolls-Royce, and a lot of land."

"Yeah. The funeral's going to be held up in Pennsylvania, close to his home. It's two days from tomorrow."

"Riku, I hope this doesn't come across as insensitive but if there's a reading of his will and you are his only remaining relative, does that mean you'll be getting all his land and that mansion?"

"Probably. I guess there's some kind of silver lining in all this. And let's be honest, I loved Uncle Vladimir and I'm sad that he's gone but it's not like we were super close. We didn't get to see each other that much. It's still painful having lost him, but it could always be worse."

Kairi and Sora both hugged Riku to console him and after a deep breath, the handsome young man looked up at his wife and boyfriend and spoke to them both about what the plan was.

"Alright. I'm going to shower and I want us to get everything we need packed because we're leaving tonight. I think if we drive all evening and get a motel room for the night before driving all day tomorrow, we can probably reach Pennsylvania well before the funeral."

Riku gently kissed both of his lovers before getting up and heading to the bathroom to shower for the big trip. Unknown to any of them, this would be the beginning of a new nightmare that would try their souls...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, there really was a trashy B-movie from the 70's called Ilsa, She-Wolf of the SS and yes, it was every bit as sleazy and tasteless as it sounds. And yes, Kairi really was that clueless at the Halloween party that year.


	3. Old Friends and New Challenges

**Best Western Express**

**Martinsburg, West Virginia**

It had been several hours since Riku had left his quaint little home in Martin Hollow for the north woods of Pennsylvania with Sora and Kairi in tow and night had fallen. The three decided to check into a Best Western for the night and get some rest as they tried to process what all was going on with the unfortunate demise of Riku's dear old uncle. Riku was quite frankly feeling rather unusual about it. It was one of those weird feelings that was difficult to describe in all honestly. The young man felt a strange mix of being sad and also stunned. Like he was shocked but he also felt very much disembodied as well. He didn't know how to feel about this because it was all so sudden like a bolt out of the blue. Uncle Vladimir was old but he wasn't that old and was generally known to be in good health since he always made sure to eat proper and drink plenty of water and also get proper exercise. But for him to just die in the middle of the night was eerie and unsettling to say the least.

The three were sitting in their room on the same bed, Riku was just staring blankly while the TV was turned on for background noise as a heavy aching feeling set down upon him.

"Look, I know this was a lot to take in but I'm sure once the funeral is over and done with and we find more about what all happened, we can all get some peace and understand this better. Why don't you and Sora go get something for us to eat? Maybe getting some fresh air and a meal could help clear your head a bit?"

"I guess so. This all happened so fast and I was in such a rush to get everything ready for us to go to the funeral and get this over with that it wasn't until we got into the car that it really began to hit me. I'm just glad Sora is able to drive us there and that the both of you are here for me."

"And we're glad to have you in our lives in general. Now c'mon! Let's go out and get some fresh air and a bite. I think there's a Burger King, an Arby's, and a Little Caesar's nearby. Whichever of the three would interest you the most?"

"I guess Burger King. I dunno about you and Kairi, but I've been wanting some BK for quite a while now. Hadn't had it in like forever."

"Alright, we'll head there right now. We'll be back in a little while, Kairi."

Riku sighed deeply as he stood up from the bed and got his shoes back on before heading out the door of the hotel room and walking alongside Sora to the car. However, the two encountered a pair of familiar faces at the vending machines by the main lobby. Specifically, it was a tall red-haired beast of a man and a blonde guy who looked an awful lot like Sora's brother.

"Roxas? Axel? Is that you?"

"Yo! Sora and Riku! What's up? What are you guys doing here anyway?"

"It's so good to see you two. I wish it was under better circumstances. Riku's Uncle Vladimir died and we're heading to his funeral in Pennsylvania."

"Wow. Talk about a spooky coincidence, we're heading to Pennsylvania as well. What part of the state are you heading to?"

"Carnifax Abbey, it's near Monroeville which is close to Pittsburgh."

"No shit? We're heading to an anime convention up in Monroeville. How long you going to be in the area?"

"We're going to be there at least a week. The funeral is the morning after tomorrow."

"Maybe we can hang out for a bit after the funeral is over and done with? Xion's coming with us too."

"I'd love to hang out with you all. I'm sure Riku would too."

"Yep, I'd be down for that. Could use all the good news and good company I can get these days with all the fucked up bullshit going on in my life lately. Anywho, Sora and I were about to pick up some dinner so we'll see you later."

"Enjoy your meal. Sorry about your loss, by the way. You've got my condolences on this one for sure."

"Thanks, Axel. I appreciate it. Have fun at your convention."

"We will. See you in the Keystone State!"

A little while later, Riku and Sora had returned to the hotel room with the food they bought for the night. Kairi was waiting for them, having changed into a soft T-shirt and shorts for the night and sitting on a chair next to the desk.

"You guys are back. That's good. Look, there was something I wanted to tell both of you guys today but the news about your uncle put it on hold. It's something very important too. I can't think of a way to word it, so I'll just go out and say it up front. Sora, Riku, I found out that I'm pregnant this morning. I wasn't sure how to say it and I wanted to tell you both at the same time so it could be special. I didn't expect us to get such bad news in the mail when Riku came home from work earlier today."

"That's wonderful, as strange as that sounds. A bit unexpected but I could use some good news to offset the bad. So I guess that means Sora and I are going to be fathers?"

"Yep. If there's any silver lining to your uncle's death, it's that his inheritance can help make sure our baby will have a good life and that we can more easily support our child as parents."

The three immediately began crying tears of joy and melancholy as they held each other closely and were once again overwhelmed by this unusually auspicious day.


	4. Carnifax Abbey

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for taking so long to update on this one.

**Carnifax Abbey**

**Washington County, Pennsylvania**

The three had drove all morning but they finally made it to their destination. Riku's spiffy car, a jet black 1990 Chevrolet Camaro IROC-Z pulled into a long fully paved driveway and up to a set of large ornate iron gates that had just been opened. The caretakers of this place were clearly expecting him and his wife and friend. The plain asphalt turned to smooth cobblestone as Riku made his way to a pavilion to park his car and head inside. Now that Riku was no longer focused on driving and parking, he could finally take in the beauty and splendor of a place he hadn't seen since he was a preteen boy.

The grounds were well kept, with all sorts of gardens and a courtyard decorated with a massive marble fountain and plenty of gargoyles and statues made in the classical style. Looking deeper into the horizon past the courtyard gardens, there was a cemetery area and a small chapel in the Gothic style and beyond that a dense forest. Turning his head in the other direction, Riku saw the home of his Uncle Vladimir, a beautiful Victorian-style mansion. This manor would now be his own home, and the home of his wife, his boyfriend, and his unborn child.

"Wow. You told me this place was nice but I never thought it'd be this marvelous. Seriously, this is the kind of place you only see in movies."

"Yep. I used to come here with my Dad whenever we'd visit Uncle Vladimir and the rest of my father's family back when I was a kid. It was well before I met you or Kairi, but I always wanted to take you two to Carnifax Abbey. I just wish it was under better circumstances."

"I know, Riku. But always remember that in spite of all the chaos and despair going on, that it could always be worse and that every cloud has a silver lining." replied Kairi, holding hands with Riku to try and comfort him.

They were met by a butler, a young and eloquent man with long jet black hair and a devilishly handsome appearance and demeanor.

"Ah! Sebastian! It's so good to see you!" replied Riku, running up and hugging the man in the tuxedo.

"Yes, Master Riku. I'm glad you could make it. I wish it could be under better circumstances given the loss of Master Vladimir. Come now, it's time to get settled in and ready for the funeral tonight."

The butler guided the trio into the main front hallway of the mansion, a colossal and well-kept hallway with a large staircase and a balcony catwalk overhead, the stairs covered with a large bright red rug that extended all the way to the front doors.

"What is this?"

"Wow! What a mansion!"

"Master Riku, who are these two you've brought with you?"

"Ah, yes, I should've mentioned this a lot sooner. This is my wife Kairi, and the spazzy goofball with the spiky brown hair is Sora, our close friend. Guys, this is Sebastian Michaelis. He has been the butler of my Uncle Vladimir since I was a little kid and might as well be family to me."

"It's a pleasure to meet you two. Come now, let's head to your bedroom."

"What about our suitcases and the other stuff we brought with us in the car?"

"I'll send for your bags. Which car do you drive?"

"It's the Camaro IROC-Z. It's pretty much the only vehicle on this ground that's a Chevy."

"Ah, good to know. Thank you for the information."

Sebastian then led the three up the staircase and to a door at the top of the balcony and on the right side of the walkway. From there, they went down another hallway with hardwood floors and walls decorated with paintings before entering the next room, a large bedroom with dark purple wallpaper, a large antique mirror hanging on the wall, with an antique mahogany desk immediately beneath it, a large wooden wardrobe, and a king-sized canopy bed with indigo drapes and matching blankets and pillows along with soft lilac purple sheets and a smaller gray door on the side of the room opposite of the bed.

"That gray door leads directly to the bathroom. There's everything you might need, including a hamper, toilet, and sink, the usual. Although instead of the usual bath tub, there's a walk-in shower area with a curtain that's big enough for three or four people, with two shower heads and a shelf area for any soaps or body wash you might need. Settle in and relax for now but do keep in mind that the funeral is at sundown and after the chapel services and burial, there will be a reading of the will."


	5. The Order of the Dragon

**Saint Seiya's Chapel**

**Carnifax Abbey, Pennsylvania**

It was evening and the sun was still out but was getting ready to set as Riku, Sora, Kairi, and Sebastian gathered in the small gothic chapel dressed in their Sunday best to attend the service for Uncle Vladimir's funeral. It was weird in every way imaginable.

Aside from the priest, the deacon, and some attendants from a local funeral home who were apparently hired as pallbearers, the four mourners were the only ones present. Meanwhile, the funeral was closed casket despite nothing in the letter suggesting that Vladimir's remains were in a state that required such a thing and the entire service seemed so boilerplate. There was no real eulogy or sermons, everything felt so mechanical and emotionless.

Stranger and creepier yet, the chapel staff all seemed to have this look on their face like they were anxious and just wanted to get it all completely over and done with and the weirdest part about the funeral was when the pallbearers hauled the coffin to the hearse. Riku led the group to follow behind the pallbearers but suddenly was stopped by a tall and stocky man dressed in fairly casual looking work clothes and aviator sunglasses who reeked of fresh cut grass, tap water, and lawnmower gasoline.

"Sorry, I can't let you follow the hearse. The burial is a closed procedure."

"But we're invited to the funeral. I'm the deceased's only living relative. Besides, the cemetery is on the mansion grounds, isn't it?"

"Sorry, but I can't let you attend. It's against the law."

"Wait, what? Why is it against the law to see my own uncle's funeral?"

"Given the grisly and unusual circumstances of your uncle's death, the county police need to do an official autopsy before we can properly dispose of the corpse. I'm sorry for your loss, but the law is the law."

"Umm, okay. We'll be staying here at the mansion for the week. If you find anything I need to know, you know where to find us."

"Thanks for the information. Here's my card, we'll call you if anything suspicious comes up that indicates foul play." replied the man, handing Riku a business card.

"Thanks, I guess." said the young man, quickly putting the card in his wallet without giving it an actual look before nearly accidentally bumping into Sebastian as he turned around to walk back to the mansion.

"Master Riku, we've got one more thing to do before the day is over. Master Vladimir left a video will for us. We will be watching it in the living room on the first floor of the mansion with the attorney your uncle hired as the executor of his estate."

"Okay. Lead the way."

After a quiet stroll back to the mansion, the four all found themselves sitting on a black leather sofa in a cozy living room in front of a large flat screen TV with a Sony Playstation 4 Pro hooked up to it. In front of them was a man in a light blue suit with a red tie, his brown hair slicked back and a awkward conniving grin on his face.

"Who are you?" asked Sora

"I'm Lionel Hutz, Attorney at Law. I'm the man that Vladimir Sephiroth picked as the executor of his estate. Since he left a video will in Blu-Ray format, all I have to do to get paid is press the X button on this controller!"

The video began and there was an older man with hair that was the same shade of shining silver as Riku but cut really short and he was wearing a dark gray smoking jacket, a mauve night shirt, and dark gray trousers that matched the color of the jacket. The man looked about sixty, someone who was old but not quite an elderly geezer.

"Hello, I'm Vladimir Sephiroth and I'm dead. If you are watching this, then that means that the sole living member of the House of Sephiroth's bloodline is my nephew Riku. To my nephew, I leave my entire estate and my entire fortune as well as all the stocks, bonds, and corporate assets I have acquired in my life. I also bequeath him the title of Grand Master of the Order of the Dragon, the knightly lineage of our family. For now, it is just an empty title but I have faith that Riku can make it more than a worthless honorary inheritance. Riku, I know you can restore the knightly order into something of value. You are the only one left who can.

To my loyal and industrious butler, Sebastian Michaelis, I leave you five million dollars in cold hard cash as well as my mint condition Lincoln Continental and Lamborghini Murcielago. I also entrust you to work for Riku and the Order of the Dragon if you choose to do so. Make sure he knows the importance of his duties, because I cannot do it any longer."

Vladimir began to tear up and cry loudly for several minutes before the crying turned into manic laughing and he sat back up to look at the camera directly.

"What can I say? This uncle is no more! He has ceased to be! He's expired and gone on to meet his maker! I'm a stiff! Bereft of life, I rest in peace! If they hadn't nailed me to the perch I'd be pushing up the daisies! I've run down the curtain and I'm singing with the choir invisible! I am an ex-uncle! Besides, I never wanted to be an aristocratic billionaire anyway. I'm sorry that this is irrelevant, but I always wanted to be a lumberjack! Yes! A lumberjack! Leaping from tree to tree as they float down the mighty rivers of British Columbia! The larch! The fir! The mighty Scots Pine! With my best girlie by my side, we'd sing! Sing! Sing!"

_Oh, I'm a lumberjack and I'm okay!_

_I sleep all night and I work all day!_

Suddenly, he was joined by a choir of eerie and ethereal-sounding voices both male and female off-camera who sang along with him...

_He's a lumberjack and he's okay!_

_He sleeps all night and he works all day!_

_I cut down trees! I eat my lunch! I go the lavatory!_

_On Wednesdays I go shoppin' and have buttered scones for tea!_

_I'm a lumberjack and I'm okay!_

_I sleep all night and I work all day!_

The video then suddenly cut transmission and went to a blue screen before the attorney hit the button for the disc tray. Riku was sitting there speechless and his eyes bugged out, shocked at what he saw.

"Well, I see your uncle was very festive who had a weird sense of humor. And apparently was a huge fan of Monty Python."

"Um, Sora...my Uncle Vladimir was not one for goofball antics over something as serious as his last will and testament. And as far as I know, he never saw anything from Monty Python. If this is Mr. Hutz's idea of a joke, it's not funny."

"For once it's not me. I didn't edit this video. Normally, I do that for clients with the inheritances that are too small for the estate tax. You'd be surprised how often that trick works. You really would!"

"Sebastian, I'm going to talk to you tomorrow about this whole Order of the Dragon nonsense because I'm completely lost and confused here. For now, I'm going to shower and go to bed."

"You're taking a shower? Mind if I join you?" responded Sora

"Um, I appreciate the offer but I'm not really in the mood to get down on the same night as my uncle's funeral. Seems kind of ghoulish and creepy"

The spiky-haired brunette blushed deeply in embarrassment. "No! Not like that! I just felt like taking a shower too and Sebastian mentioned that the master bathroom has one of those walk-in showers with multiple heads that can fit more than one person. Could save some time. I was speaking literally."

"Oh, okay. Well, that's okay I guess." replied the newly minted nobleman to his boyfriend.

"Kairi, what are your plans for tonight?"

"Eh, I'm probably going to sit on the couch and watch TV or something, I'm feeling a bit restless and not really ready to go to sleep just yet. If I don't come back to bed, then that means I will have probably crashed here on the couch and fell asleep."

Making their way to the master bathroom, Riku and Sora immediately stripped down, put their clothes in the laundry hamper and got the shower started. The water was already set at the right temperature and things were good to go. No fiddling with the hot and cold water settings to get the temperature just right. They had to admit, this was pretty good and a lot better than the finicky shower they had back in the holler.

"You know Riku, I have to admit that video will was kind of fucked up even for me. I'm a sucker for goofball humor and random Monty Python references but that seemed out of nowhere even for me. It's even creepier knowing that your uncle wasn't one for those kind of pranks."

"Yeah. Uncle Vladimir was laid back and easy going, but he wasn't a modern-day Andy Kaufman who thought everything was a joke. Something's up. Between the closed casket funeral and the video will, I think he was murdered. I'd call the cops but apparently they're investigating it since there's that whole autopsy. Still don't know why a groundskeeper would be working with cops though."

"Eh, he's probably employed by the county and was making sure nobody got in the way of the authorities by accident or something. I'd try not to think too hard on that part. It's been a long day and we've been on the road for a while. For now, let's just try to relax and get some well-earned rest."

"Agreed. Sora, can you do me a favor?"

"Yeah?"

"Can you scrub my back for me? Trying to get that hard to reach spot on my upper back."

"No problem, my good man."

Riku handed Sora a fresh washcloth that was soaped up and the brunette began to scrub his back. The two decided to relax, focus on the positives, and try to forget the weirdness of the past 24 hours. Deciding to help his boyfriend out, Sora decided to sing a song that he and Riku both enjoyed, one that Riku would inevitably sing along with.

_There is a time for love and laughter_

_The days will pass like summer storms_

_The winter winds will follow after_

_But there is love and love is warm_

_There is a time for us to wonder_

_When time is young and so are we_

_The woods are green, they're over yonder_

_The path is new, the world is free_

_There is a time when leaves are falling_

_The woods are gray, the paths are old_

_The snow will come when geese are calling_

_You'll need a fire against the cold_

_So do your roaming in the springtime_

_You'll find your love in the summer sun_

_The frost will come and bring a harvest_

_And you can sleep when day is done_

_There is a time for us to wonder_

_When time is young and so are we_

_The woods are green, they're over yonder_

_The path is new, the world is free_

Riku had always enjoyed that song ever since he was a kid, and it calmed him down even to this day. As they finished singing their song and before they could do or say anything else, Sora and Riku heard a voice shouting from the other room that sounded like Kairi. Immediately, the two sprang into action and shut off the shower, getting dried off and putting on their pairs of boxers just enough so they could be decent before heading out to find Kairi in the bedroom with a panicked look on her face.

"Sora! Riku! I think I saw something..."

"Kairi? What's going on? Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, but I heard someone enter the front doors. While you two were having some kind of tribute concert to The Darling Boys, those large doors to the main hall opened up without a knock or a doorbell or anything."

"It was probably Sebastian."

"Sebastian was with me. He went out to check what was going on. I came up here using a back staircase that Sebastian showed me."

"Oh. That's not good. I'm gonna check it out. Sora, you finish getting dressed and stay here with Kairi. If I don't come back, avenge me!" said Riku, immediately donning a tank top and some pajama pants before grabbing a machete that Vladimir had kept near the bedroom door beside a coat rack and heading immediately out the door and down the hallway and stairs before rushing out with the large hacking blade fully drawn.

"Put down the weapon, Riku. I'm not going to hurt you."

The young man dropped the machete immediately on the ground as he stared at the man near the doorway. He was a tall and imposing figure with long silver hair, bright green eyes, and clad in a black tuxedo with a long black cape.

"Who are you? How do you know my name?"

"You could say I'm an old friend of the Order of the Dragon. My name is Vladislav Sephiroth or as you may have otherwise heard, Prince Vlad III of Wallachia or Count Dracula."

"Count Dracula? Like the vampire novel? Is this some kind of joke? Suddenly, a guy with the same surname as me who looks like some kind of long lost relative of mine that I never heard of and who neither Uncle Vladimir nor my mom ever mentioned, just shows up on the night of my uncle's funeral and claims he's a character from some old Victorian novel and countless old tacky monster movies? Sorry, but that dog don't hunt!"

"No, it's true. The name is a coincidence, I assure you. Dracula means Son of the Dragon. As in the Order of the Dragon. The same holy order of knights your uncle mentioned in his will."

"Oh fuck, you're serious. You're Count Dracula. Like is this really a coincidental thing like how my high school principal was named Tina Turner or did you just say that to comfort me because you're the real deal?"

"I have to admit, you're quite observant. Yes, I am the actual Dracula. Normally, I'd keep that a secret but I can trust you. I'm telling you this because you need to know."

"Where's Sebastian?"

"Don't worry, he's fine and unharmed. He knew that I was coming over to my family's rightful grounds here in the New World. I've actually been in the area for a few weeks, actually. Tonight is a special occasion."

"Wait...did you kill my uncle."

"No, I did not. In fact, I aim to find the ones who did and make them suffer dearly. We don't have much time. Tonight is a full moon and I want to take care of this before the moon wanes."

"Take care of what?"

"I want to give you the choice that I was never given..."


	6. The Vampire's Kiss

"You'll give me the choice you were never given? That sounds awfully familiar...wait did you just quote Anne Rice?"

"Hey, what can I say? I'm a fan of her early works. The Vampire Lestat was the mad notes, I patterned my whole unlife after that motherfucker!" replied Sephiroth, a hint of lighthearted joy and childlike excitement in his words.

"Wow. Just wow. An actual real-life vampire who also loves vampire novels? Now I've seen everything."

"Yes, Riku. I know it's weird. But onto more serious matters. We've got business to attend to. Do you wish to join me in my mission? Do you want to catch your uncle's murderer and fulfill his last wish of restoring the Order of the Dragon to its full glory?"

"Well, I do but I'm not quite sure. Like, are you going to turn me into a vampire?"

"Alright, I'll level with you. I do want to embrace you into the ranks of the undead. But I can tell that it's troubling you."

"Yeah, see it's just that I've got a wife. And I really care for Sora and Kairi both..."

"Let me guess, Kairi is pregnant too and you want to care for her, Sora, and your unborn child."

"Wait, how did you know that?"

"I've been around for centuries and I can read your thoughts. Not all vampires have that ability though, and some can't turn it on and off like I can. Aside from a few universal traits, different vampires have different strengths and weaknesses."

"Like what?"

"Well, the things we all have in common are that we never grow old, we never die by normal means, we've got enhanced strength, speed, and senses. But we can never go out in the sun and we must always feed."

"Why are you just blabbing this away? Don't you guys keep this thing a secret? You know, the Masquerade and all that?"

"I see you're a White Wolf fan as well. Good taste on your part. But I'm telling you this because I know I can trust you. And I appreciate your intuitiveness."

"Thanks. Look, I really do want to help you but I'm not sure if I can."

"I understand. Let me offer a new proposal then. If you agree to join us, I can train you for the next several months in the ways of the arcane and educate you on the history and the goals of the Order, but I will not turn you until after your baby is born. And I will make sure that Sora and Kairi are taken care of and that you can spend plenty of time with your wife, your partner, and your kid."

"Thanks. I appreciate it. I really do."

"We will begin training tomorrow night and I will introduce you to the rest of my coven as well, and you can take the rest of tonight and tomorrow day to rest. But before I head back out, can I ask one favor of you?"

"Sure, what is it?"

"I need to feed."

"Um, what? I thought you said you weren't going to turn me until after the baby was born."

"I did, and I intend to keep that promise. But merely feeding from you isn't enough to turn you into a vampire. It's a complicated and ritualized process. And I'll only drinking a little blood from you, not enough to actually put you in danger."

"Okay, I guess you can. But only a little bit."

Sephiroth pulled Riku closer and hugged him closely, the vampire lord covering him with his cape and leaning in closely before biting down on Riku's neck. Drawing a bit of blood, he only fed on the young man for a few moments but for Riku, it felt like hours. However, he was not expecting how it would feel. Riku thought it would be agonizing pain, but what he felt was a sense of soothing euphoria, similar to a high but not quite. It felt good, to be quite honest.

Before he knew it, he felt the Count unlatch and withdraw his fangs before licking the wounds on his neck and healing them instantly. and then Sephiroth leaned closer and kissed him deeply and unexpectedly, though Riku didn't mind. The vampire's kiss tasted heavily of the metallic flavor of blood, but Riku didn't care and sorta shrugged it off.

"I know that seemed strange, but it's an Old World custom from back in my day and I assure you it's platonic. Even if things are different in your time. Besides, I wouldn't kiss you if you genuinely were against it. Rest easy, I'll see you tomorrow night. And I'm sure my brides and my sons will be glad to meet you. Don't tell Kairi or Sora just yet. I'm wanting to introduce myself to them personally."

"No problem. Mum's the word on my end."

"Very well then."

The vampire Sephiroth smiled as he walked away from the front entrance, the doors closing behind him automatically. Riku was feeling a bit delirious and tired, but also relaxed and kinda good. Slowly, he stumbled up the staircase and back to his bedroom and changed his clothes for bed, his body felt heavy and weary but he was also lightheaded at the same time. Sora and Kairi were sitting in bed already, waiting for him.

"Who was it?" asked Sora.

"It was Sebastian and the local Sheriff. The autopsy confirmed that my uncle was murdered and that they might have an idea who the killer is, pending further investigation. They'll keep me posted."

"Sorry to hear that, sweetie. Let's get some rest. We've had a very long and rough couple of days." replied Kairi.

"Agreed." said Riku yawning and nodding. He got into the bed with his wife and partner as the three cuddled together closely and all fell asleep practically in unison, right then and there. It had been a rough night, and they definitely earned their rest.

But the nightmare was only just beginning...


	7. The Smell of Fear

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter takes place after the events of the previous one, but it's set during the daytime and we get acquainted with some old friends from earlier.

**Monroeville Mall**

**Monroeville, Pennsylvania**

"Man, that was an awesome con! I'm glad we could go there. I'm even more glad that I could be there with you and Roxas."

Xion had to admit that she was very happy and had a great time with her brother Roxas and her boyfriend Axel. The three had just got done with a local anime convention and were now chilling at the famous Monroeville Mall. The three were sitting together at the same food court table, each one sipping their own drinks they got from the vending machines and enjoying the chill ambiance with Roxas staring idly at a fountain and seemingly within his own little world.

"Roxas! You there?" said Axel as he pushed the blonde's shoulder.

"What? Oh, sorry I kinda spaced out there. So, now that we've got the con taken care of, what's next?"

"Well, we're going to meet your older brother Cloud at the rendezvous along with the rest of our packmates. Then we'll begin our tribal festivities."

"Do you think Sora knows about what's going on tonight?"

"He probably does, but he's not really involved in all this like me, Xion, and Cloud are. I'm not even sure if he's fully aware of his true nature like we are. He might not have even inherited the same traits that me and Xion did. Fraternal twins are weird like that, and fraternal triples even weirder."

"Yeah. It's kinda weird, you know. Coincidentally, the death of your uncle-in-law is troubling to say the least. The sacred forest glen we have for our tribal grounds is also part of the wider property of Carnifax Abbey. The House of Sephiroth owns that land."

"I mean, Vladimir Sephiroth was pretty goddamn fucking wealthy. He was of noble blood and he was a big shot with heavy investments in both Silicon Valley and Wall Street as well as holdings in Europe and Japan. There's no way he wouldn't will all that to Riku. Considering Riku is in a throuple with Sora and that Kairi girl, I'm pretty sure we're in the clear for now."

"I hope so. Call it a hunch, but I got this strange feeling that something bad's going to happen in the next couple of weeks. Do we know how Vladimir died?"

"Well, according to the black-bordered envelope Sora showed me at the hotel back in West Virginia, Uncle Vladimir died of sudden and complete exsanguination in his sleep."

"Oh fuck! Why didn't either of you tell me this?"

"What? Why, Xion?"

"Because exsanguination means blood loss. Vladimir Sephiroth literally bled to death while he was asleep. Either there's a serial killer afoot or vampires are active in the area. Given the fact that the House of Sephiroth is the same noble lineage that Vlad the Impaler belonged to, I'm wondering if Count Dracula had something to do with Vladimir's death? What if he's trying to take over Carnifex Abbey?"

"You really think a vampire did this?"

"Stranger things have happened. Could explain the weird feeling I've got. It's like I can smell the faint scent of fear and danger in the air. And the closer we got to Carnifex Abbey, the stronger it gets. I didn't notice it until we crossed the bridge into Pennsylvania and entered the area. It weakened when we took that detour through Pittsburgh but now we're closer to the place and it's returned."

"Fuck, you smell it too? I thought it was just me."

"Nah, it's not just you and Xion, Roxas. I could sense it as well."

"Dracula is a legendary vampire. And I'm pretty sure he could wipe the floor with all of us even if we combined our strength. We'll need to tell this to Cloud and to the leader of the pack as well. This could be a big problem."

The three nodded and finished the last of their soft drinks before getting up in unison and silently walked out of the mall, making sure to keep a steady pace but not draw any kind of attention to themselves.


	8. A Formal Meet and Greet

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Count formally introduces himself to Kairi and Sora, and brings some guests along with him

**Carnifex Abbey**

**March 31, 2005**

It was about half an hour after dark on the second night after Riku's first meeting with Sephiroth and the funeral of Uncle Vladimir and the young man was anxiously sitting at the dining room table with Sora and Kairi, the three all dressed in their Sunday best as they waited for the guest to arrive. Riku was starting to tremble while Sora seemed like he was off in his own little world and staring blankly into space while Kairi sat there quietly and unaware of why her husband was so nervous.

Suddenly, the dining room door opened and everyone sat up in attention as Sebastian held the door for the guests. First was the Count himself, still clad in the black tuxedo from before but making sure to hand Sebastian his cape. Following Sephiroth were six other figures, three male and three female. The three women were in the front and the three men in the back. Each one wore identical outfits, the women in black gowns and the men in black suits with white dress shirts and silver pinstriped dress vests. But while Sephiroth's entourage were all dressed alike, they all had a distinctive physical appearance and each one had a unique demeanor.

Among the ladies, there was a tall woman with long black hair who seemed energetic and physically fit and to be quite blunt, was kind of busty for someone of her physique. The second was a shorter and younger woman of East Asian heritage who looked no older than eighteen or nineteen with short black hair, and the third was a woman with light purple hair and piercing eyes with demonic red irises.

The men all looked fairly young, no younger than eighteen and no older than twenty-five. Two of them appeared to be brothers with raven black hair and piercing dark eyes, the younger one with a stereotypical "emo" duckbutt haircut. The third was also black-haired but also pale and kind of energetic, holding a notepad and a calligrapher's pen.

"I suppose I should introduce myself and get these formalities out of the way. I am Vladislav Sephiroth, one of the two last surviving men in the House of Sephiroth alongside my son Riku and one of the few remaining sworn knights in The Order of the Dragon. You may also know me by the name Count Dracula. And before you start to laugh, that's my actual title. "Dracula" means Son of the Dragon and it is a title bestowed on the Grand Master of The Order of the Dragon. These three ladies are my brides. Their names are Tifa, Yuffie, and Ayane. They are accompanied by my three adopted sons, Itachi, Sasuke, and Sai."

Sephiroth sat down directly across from Riku with his brides and his sons sitting beside Sora and Kairi respectively while Sebastian served glasses of wine. The guests were served what looked like dark red wine served chilled while Riku, Kairi, and Sora were given white wine that was served at room temperature.

"Now, I know what you're thinking and I want to make it clear that I don't want to discuss any vampire shenanigans tonight because of my title. We've got a lot of serious issues to discuss, namely that my brother Vladimir was murdered and I think it may have something to do with a business deal gone wrong."

I've received similar threats and attempts on my own life in the past few months and when I found out Vladimir was murdered, I made sure to travel put all the way from Hungary to the United States. I'm not quite sure who's behind all this but I have my suspicions. As such, I'm going to stay here at Carnifex Abbey to protect the Order's assets and also watch over my son and his wife and friend."

Sora raised his hand, confused by all this...

"Um, Mr. Sephiroth...if you're Riku's dad, where the hell have you been all these years?"

"I'm an immigrant on a business Visa and I had to head back to Hungary shortly after Riku's seventeenth birthday. Thankfully, I got it renewed again so I could come over here and get my full residency status. Still, even with my wealth, bureaucracy is a slow and arduous process, especially when it's international. At least I got to fly from Budapest to Pittsburgh on a private flight."

"Oh. Well, that makes sense...oh, shit. Looks like my brother Cloud's sending me a text. Mind if I go into the other room and call him back? Pardon my language."

"No problem at all, my good man. Besides, I'm not bothered by swearing. I'm actually pretty uncouth outside of formal events or occasions. As for the rest of you, feel free to go about as you please. We're the guests here, and you're the owners of the mansion and its grounds from now on. I just arrived here so I can be with my son and make sure my brother Vladimir's killers get the justice they deserve."

Kairi and Riku sat up and walked off to the living room where they viewed Vladimir's will the day before, Sora having gone into another room to talk to his brother on the phone.

Meanwhile, Dracula just sat there in the dining room with his sons and brides, smiling quietly.


	9. Strange Things

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The plot thickens a little bit more...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Also, an anachronism from Chapter 5 is finally explained...

Kairi had to admit that Riku's long-lost father sort of gave her the creeps at the dinner table but she could not bring herself to say it out loud in front of him. Still, the two had once more sat down on the leather sofa in the living room and Riku was completely exhausted mentally but was glad to get the formalities out of the way to say the least.

"So, you want to check out what's on TV tonight?"

"Sure. Let's see what's on Adult Swim, I think tonight is the same night they do their annual April Fool's prank. Could be wrong though. Let me find the remote."

Kairi immediately walked up across the soft carpet on the floor to reach the remote control but as she looked down, she was taken aback.

"Riku, get a look at this. You know the gaming console that the lawyer played your uncle's video will on?"

"Yeah, it was a Playstation 2. Those can play DVD's as well as games, you know."

"Get a look at this. This isn't a PS2. It's a PS4."

"Oh come on! We're still on the PS2. They're just now discussing the possibility of a Playstation 3 for next year. There's no way in Hell that they already have a Playstation 4, even as some kind of experimental prototype!"

"See for yourself..."

"It's probably just one of those foreign knock-off consoles or something."

"Then why would it work hooked up to an American TV, especially one of the new Hi-Definition digital flatscreens?"

"Fuck, you're right..."

Getting up to check, it became fairly obvious that Kairi was telling the truth. The console was a lot more blocky and looked more like a trapezoid than the slim rectangle that the newest PS2 models had. The controller also looked completely different and suddenly Riku felt a very surreal and jarring feeling, like he was in the Twilight Zone or something...

"Whoa. Why would Uncle Vladimir have a video game console from the future? I'm confused now."

"I don't know. But I think it might have something to do with his murder and why your dad came over here from Europe. Vladimir did have a lot of investments in different tech companies and electronics manufacturers, right?"

"Yep. He held stocks in Amazon, Microsoft, Sony, and Google. And now I have them as part of my inheritance. You think this could be some kind of corporate espionage or something?"

"Maybe. We should probably keep an eye on your dad and learn more about The Order of the Dragon and any corporate connections and business partners your uncle had.

Meanwhile, Sora was off in a game room that had a pool table, a jukebox, several arcade games and a bar as he chatted with his brother Cloud on his cell phone.

"Yeah, I agree with you that I think Riku's dad is a vampire and is the real Count Dracula. I can sense it, same as you guys can. But I don't think he murdered Vladimir. I've got the same gifts you guys have, I can sense he was telling the truth. I don't think he knows about us or any of the others in our pack. I've intentionally kept that part about our family hidden from Riku and Kairi, okay? As far as they know, you're just my older brother while Roxas and Xion are my fraternal twin siblings and Axel is a friend of the Strife family. Look, I'll meet you tomorrow night for the ceremony. It's at the mansion grounds, right?"

"Yeah. We're going to be in the clearing next to that grove of oak trees and evergreens just behind the graveyard and we'll have a bonfire built up so you can see us more easily."

"Alright. I'll be there."


	10. The Rites of the Wild

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sora meets up with Cloud and the rest of his kin

**Allegheny Forest**

**Carnifex Abbey, Pennsylvania**

**March 31, 2005**

It was two hours before midnight when Sora made his way across the expansive grounds of the mansion and entered the woods at the edge of the property. He saw the flickering orange light of the bonfire just up ahead and immediately headed towards it, holding his hands in his pockets and shivering just a bit in the unusually cool nighttime air, his only light being the bright and nearly full moon and stars in the sky above him.

His siblings Cloud, Roxas, and Xion were there alongside his best friend Axel and some other familiar faces, namely a tall and imposing tanned man with piercing blue eyes and long black hair done up in a ponytail and a shorter but fairly athletic looking young woman with emerald green eyes and bright red hair standing close beside him.

"Cloud! Roxas! Xion! Good to see you! Looks like the pack's all here, doesn't it?"

"It pretty much is now that you're here. How you been, little brother?"

"I've been pretty good, all things considered. The whole thing with Riku's uncle dying and some honest-to-God vampires showing up right after is kind of suspicious but I get this weird feeling that neither Dracula nor his lackeys had anything to do with the death. Call it a hunch, but my intuition's pretty good when it comes to that sort of thing."

"You always were surprisingly good at reading people, even if you seem to be socially unaware and off in your own little world."

"Hey, what can I say? I'm a strange dude."

"We all are strange as can be. What with the fact we're a pack of werewolves. But hey, the Wolf must hunt and protect the herds from those evil spirits that would do them harm."

"Don't I know it. But hey, it's a sacred day and we've got business to attend to. Let's get to it."

The Strife siblings and Axel all sat around the bonfire in silent reverence while the tall long-haired man stood up to preach and to announce while the redheaded woman stood beside him.

"I am Kouga, the Alpha Male and leader of the pack, the Band of the Wildwood Walkers. Tonight is the first ritual of Spring and is an auspicious occasion, seven days after the vernal equinox. With me is Ayame, she is the Alpha Female and pack shaman, our honorable co-leader of the pack who shall guide us in this ritual to honor the spirits of the woodland and guide us in these trying and uncertain times."

Kouga stood back and let Ayame step forth to begin the ceremonies. She began to chant and light candles and incense before grabbing a bundle of reeds and a strange cloth bag.

"We call upon the elder spirit Wematanye, the Totem Spirit of our pack and one of the main spirits of these woods. We call upon him to thank him for allowing the pack to be fully reunited and to guide us in our solemn duties and we will honor his laws and promises. The Band of the Wildwood Walkers are with you and with all the benevolent Elder Spirits."

Ayame then went around the campfire, handing each pack member a reed and an amulet taken from the cloth bag she carried as Kouga spoke once more.

"These are sacred talismans blessed by Wematanye and each one has a unique blessing for the one worthy enough to wear it. All of can repel malevolent spirits and their servants if needed and they will be with you in whatever form you may take, be it man, beast, or wolf. We have been called forth to fight a deep seated and malignant evil that has fallen upon this land and its horrifying servants. I don't know what specific demonic entity it is that's behind this, but they have many followers. Some are lesser spirits, others are mortal cultists, and some are lurking monsters. Those who survive this sacred and holy war will be honored heroes of our kind and those who don't will be dead, but their spirits will live on.

All will be honored and blessed and have their names in the ancient Book of Feronia, the great text that holds records the histories and legends of the shifters and those who walk the spirit world."

As Kouga finished his speech, each one put on their amulet and all of the pack howled in unison before heading out into the woods in various directions as they began their great mission. For now, they were to scout all over find out the source of the evil and corruption lurking within the area.


	11. A Morning To Myself

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> While Sora roams town with his pack and Sephiroth sleeps in a cellar away from the sun, Riku goes to unwind and enjoy the morning.

**Carnifex Abbey**

**April 1, 2005**

The sun had risen, the bright blinding light catching Riku off guard as he sat up from the bed. Making a visor of his own left hand, the man made quick hate to close the curtains to the master bedroom and let himself adjust. Looking around, the only other person in bed was his expectant wife, still asleep and snoring loudly.

"Hmm, Sora must've spent the night with his brothers and Axel. Oh well, what are ya gonna do?"

Gently, Riku nudged Kairi's shoulders to try and wake her up, only eliciting a sheepish response of "Sleep in" and "so tired". Figuring that Kairi was still tired and stressed out from the past few nights, he decided it'd be best to just let his wife sleep in for the day and get some well-earned rest. 

"Well, if you need me, I'll be in the kitchen getting some breakfast and maybe hit the game room too. Sebastian said it's just down the first floor hallway next to the dining room and the game room is at the very end of that very same hallway and it's the door on the left. Sleep well."

"Mmmh...okay..."

Not one second after her response, Kairi immediately crashed and began to snore once more. He was honestly surprised his wife fell asleep that quick, but he figured the stress wore her out and seeing as she was in the early stages of pregnancy, she probably needed to get some more rest anyway. Riku smiled, took a quick four-minute shower and slid on his Sisters of Mercy T-shirt that was three sizes too large for him as well as a pair of blue boxer shorts and white socks before heading on downstairs to the kitchen.

He had to admit, the kitchen was really nice and larger than he expected. There was a large island-style prep table, a microwave, oven, toaster, several stainless steel pantries and a matching fridge plus the floor was done in a nice black and white chessboard tile pattern that he always liked the look of. Opening the fridge, he looked for something for breakfast...

"Hmm, let's see what we got to drink. There's milk, brandy, soda, some purple stuff...Alright, Sunny D!"

Immediately, Riku grabbed the bottle of Sunny Delight and poured himself a glass. Deciding to chase that with a can of Mountain Dew he saw in the same fridge, he then got some graham crackers from the pantry for a quick snack. But he noticed something strange next to the box of crackers in that same pantry. A white pill bottle and a bag of gummies."

"Hmm, Uncle Vladimir probably left these in here. What are they, some kind of vitamins? NoDoz? What is that, some kind of fancy brand of vitamins from Europe? I guess when you're a billionaire, Centrum is too plebeian."

Deciding to open a second can of Mountain Dew to take the pill with, Riku then opened the bag of gummies and ate three or four of them. Had he paid attention to the label, he would know they weren't your usual gummy bears or anything like that. They were a lot stronger than that. Turning the bag around, his eyes opened wide at the label.

"Flintstones Chewable Amphetamine? I didn't even know that was a thing! You'd think the failure of Flintstones Chewable Morphine would get them to learn their lesson! When will those sick bastards at Johnson & Johnson learn!"

Soon, Riku felt a weird euphoric sensation and he felt very energetic. The young aristocrat-in-training was manic as fuck and had a pep in his step as he decided to walk down to the game room. He had to admit, Vladimir knew how to party.

The game room was cozy looking, with smooth polished hardwood floors, wood panel walls, three round tables and six sturdy plush chairs, two for each table. There were also two pool tables, a digital jukebox, a large TV with a PS2 and plenty of other consoles, a dartboard, a bar with all sorts of fine liquor brands, anime and horror movie posters on the walls, and five mint-condition arcade machines for CarnEvil, Tekken 5, Super Street Fighter II Turbo, and Lethal Enforcers II. 

On one of the tables, Riku saw a pair of Ray Ban aviator shades and a cordless microphone that seemed to be out of batteries. Looking at the sunglasses and microphone on the table and then looking at the jukebox, the currently tweaked out young man got an idea....

Soon, he found a song he always liked and set it to play before putting on a pair of sunglasses and intentionally sliding across the floor in his socks...

_I want my..._

_I want my MTV..._

Raising up the microphone, he began to dance and shake to the rhythm of the opening guitar riffs and sing...

_Now look at them yo-yo's, that's the way you do it_

_You play the guitar on the MTV_

_That ain't workin'. that's the way you do it_

_Money for nothing and your chicks for free_

_Now that ain't workin, these guys ain't dumb_

_Maybe you get a blister on your finger_

_Maybe you get a blister thumb_

_We got to install some microwave ovens_

_Custom kitchen deliveries_

_We got to move these refrigerators_

_We got to move these color TV's_

_Now look here people, listen to my story_

_A little story about a man named Jed_

_You know something? That poor mountaineer_

_They say he barely kept his family fed_

_Now let me tell you, one day he was shooting_

_Old Jed was shooting at some food_

_When all of a sudden right up from the ground there_

_Well, there came a bubbling crude_

_Oil that is, well maybe you call it_

_Black Gold or Texas Tea_

_He gonna move next to Mr. Drysdale_

_And be a Beverly Hillbilly!_

_We got to install these microwave ovens_

_Custom kitchen deliveries_

_We got to move these refrigerators_

_We got to move these color TV's_

Riku was now prancing around in a state of joyful mania in his oversized Sisters of Mercy T-Shirt, newfound shades, and boxers as he had the time of his life that morning, not even caring he was mixing up the lyrics to the song with those of the Weird Al parody version.

Off in his own little world and moving to the groove of the music, he did not notice the footsteps approaching and it wasn't until the music stopped that he heard someone enter the game room.

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING, YOU MOTHERFUCKER!?!"

This wasn't going to be good...


	12. An Overdose of Trouble

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for taking so long to update this. Got a little sidetracked with some IRL stuff.

It was Sora, chuckling as he got Riku to turn around totally spooked.

"Hehe, sorry for interrupting your one-man karaoke party but I'm back from hanging out with my three bros, my sister, and my buddy Axel. You seem to be quite energetic today."

"Yup...I'm, uh, loose as a goose and ready to roll. I'm more fired up than a supernova in a large napalm factory and giddier than Oedipus on Mother's Day. Been hyped up thanks to the power of these chewable gummies. I feel like I could take on the Dallas Cowboys. I'm it, I'm like Superman and I could probably stand on the railroad tracks and stop a coal train right then and there!"

"They must be pretty good then. What are they, some B vitamins mixed with caffeine and funky herbal stuff. Lemme see that bag."

Looking down at the bag of Flintstones Chewable Amphetamines, Sora's eyes nearly hopping right out of their sockets when he saw the label on the front. But soon his attention drifted to the warning labels and the nutrition facts and suddenly he grew a lot more concerned...

_WARNING: Do not take more than one per day. Side effects can include hypertension, paranoia, risk of heart attack or stroke. If accidental overdose occurs, immediately seek medical attention_

"Uh...Riku? How many of those gummies did you have?"

"I dunno, about three or four I guess. I didn't know what they were until after I ate them. Why, is everything okay?"

"Yeah, fine. Everything's just fine. I'm gonna see if Sebastian can bring us up some breakfast..."

The brunette didn't want to spook his boyfriend and give him cause to freak out. If Riku got all worked up, it could possibly trigger a massive heart attack or even worse. Deciding to keep calm and get some help without being too conspicuous, Sora immediately walked over to a brass button by the doorway.

"Sebastian?"

"Yes, Master Sora?"

"Can you come up here? I'm here in the Game Room with Riku and we're wondering about this morning. I just got home a few minutes ago and Riku's found some gummies of some sort."

"Oh dear Lord, he found Master Vladimir's stash, didn't he? How many did he take?"

"Three or four."

"I'll be right there."

Riku looked up at his lover, his body twitching and his eyes wide open but seemingly unaware at the same time. Leaping up, he immediately hugged his spiky-haired boyfriend closely, kissing him on the cheek.

"Sora, you're awesome. I love you and Kairi both, because you two are the greatest! Kairi's still asleep last I checked. She felt very tired, so I figured she could sleep in."

"Thanks for the compliment, sweetie. But why don't we go meet Sebastian and figure out what to do next?"

"Sure, I guess we could do that. I like Sebastian, he's a good guy. Real prim and proper but also kind and generous. Plus, I ain't gonna lie, I think he's kinda hot. Not as hot as you or Kairi though. You two are the best around! Nothing's ever gonna beat the best!"

Sora smiled and nodded, realizing Riku was probably in a manic state that was very likely worsened by the chewable speed he unwittingly took. The young man couldn't take his meds today, that was for sure. Sora wasn't sure if Riku's regular mood medications would have some kind of adverse effect combined with the speed he was on. Keeping Riku calm was the priority for Sora as he led his lover down the hallways before encountering Sebastian.

"Master Riku, you look pretty terrible. Your eyes are all bloodshot."

"Yeah, I'm a little hyped up this morning. Had some of those chewable go pills I found in the pantry!"

"Sora already told me. I got worried and called an ambulance thinking you overdosed. Your eyes are all bloodshot and you're a little jittery but you seem to be fine. Still, you should probably get in there and go to the doctor. It's probably nothing but hey, might as well get this checked out anyway."

"Yeah, I'm happy. I feel so pretty. Oh so pretty, and witty, and gay!"

"Well, technically you're bi."

"Heh, that's true. Sora definitely has my number on that one. Well, probably because he's the same way. Me and him are bi but our wifey Kairi is straighter than an arrow. She loves the dudes. And I love her and Sora. Alright, Sebastian! Let's roll!"

"Right this way, Master Riku."

Sebastian and Sora both did their best to keep on a happy face and a calm demeanor as not to stress out Riku and keep him as relaxed as possible as they helped walk him to the front hall of the mansion, Sora holding his lover's quivering hand closely the entire time. Greeting them at the front entrance was an ambulance and a small crew of medics.

"Where's the person in need of assistance?"

"Right here! It's me! I'm Riku Sephiroth, I took a bunch of special amphetamine gummies my uncle had left in the pantry, I didn't know they were speed though. I'm fine. Really hyped up as fuck but I'm fine."

"How many did you have, Mr. Sephiroth?"

"Three or four, I'm not sure. Sebastian says I should go to the hospital to make sure everything is fine. It's probably nothing but I've got insurance so we're good!"

As Riku helped himself onto the back of the ambulance and laid himself down on the gurney, his loyal butler quietly told the paramedic that they were trying to keep him calm and relaxed so it wouldn't exacerbate any issues that would occur. Nodding in confirmation, the medic hopped into the back and closed the doors of the ambulance as they drove off

Checking Riku's blood pressure, a short-haired female medic was shocked at the sight of his blood pressure. Trying to keep her composure, she said "Sir, you seem unusually relaxed and easy-going for someone all hopped on speed. Jittery and hyper as all get out, but not scared or nervous."

"Yeah, it'll probably save his life." whispered her coworker to inform her of what was going on.

"Oh, I got ya. Definitely. Well, we're going to take you to the ER over at Forbes Hospital. Don't worry, it's just a standard procedure. Everything's gonna be just fine."

"Yep yep yep! I'll be fine. We'll get there, I'm gonna wait for this stuff to wear off, the doctor's gonna check it out and I'll be okay and head home to my wife and partner. Everything's gonna be fine."

Riku sighed in contentment as he laid back on the gurney, still fidgeting and shaking but totally oblivious to the severity of the situation. He wouldn't die that night, but he would encounter an enigmatic figure at that hospital and a shocking revelation that would shake his soul to the very core...


	13. Dark Nights and Cold Hearts

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As Riku recovers in the hospital, he discovers an unsettling truth.,,

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is one of the longer ones and is a pretty major development in the story arc

**Forbes Hospital**

**Monroeville, Pennsylvania**

**April 3rd, 2005**

Riku found himself in the brightly lit and cold-looking emergency room of a hospital, still kind of elated and just not taking anything seriously even though he was sweating like a Congressman in church and trembling thanks to all that speed he was on. He didn't fully understand what was going on until he heard footsteps steadily clap across the hard tile floors of the hospital hallway and looked ahead to see an older man in his sixties or maybe very early seventies, he was balding and wearing a black dress shirt and khakis with a labcoat and a nametag that indicated he was the doctor at this ER for the day.

"Is a Riku Sephiroth here?" The doctor's accent sounded distinctly Southwestern, most likely either Arizonan or Nevadan, maybe West Texan.

"Yeah. Over here, Doc."

"Good morning, Mr. Sephiroth. I'm Doctor Mitchell, the lead doctor for the ER day shift. So, it says here you overdosed on some amphetamines but didn't seem to be aware of what they were."

"Yeah. I saw them in a cabinet at my uncle's house and I thought they were vitamins or something. Wasn't really thinking clearly because I just woke up that morning. Is there a problem?"

"Chart here says your blood pressure's through the roof and you've got the fidgeting and sweat of someone who's hopped up on stimulants."

"I am sweating a lot and feel very hot, but I figured the heater was turned up a little high or something. I mean, we've just started Spring so it's still chilly in the morning. How bad is it? Am I gonna be okay?"

"Relax. You've not had any heart attacks, strokes, or aneurysms yet. I'll give you something to counteract the amphetamine effects and everything will be fine. After that, just take it easy and drink lots of water for the next few days. I'll give you some medication that will calm you down and lower the blood pressure. You'll probably feel really sleepy for the day."

"That's fine."

The doctor walked back out and made sure to close the privacy curtain on his way out, leaving Riku to sit there and fidget as his mind raced at a mile a minute. If he really overdosed, then things were bad. But since he got here early, it wouldn't be a problem if he did. The chewables were probably a low-dose issue, but it still perplexed him why Vladimir even had them in his kitchen no less. Come to think of it, there were a lot of caffeinated drinks in that fridge. Energy drinks, sodas, canned espressos. He wasn't sure, but he thought he saw a Mr. Coffee on the nightstand in the bedroom as well.

_Why my uncle trying to stay up all the time? Was he afraid of something? I mean, paranoia and other mental illnesses do run in my family. He was entering his older years. Maybe he was in the earliest stages of dementia and that could've kicked off some latent condition? Then again, he WAS murdered. So it's likely he was staying up all the time to try and keep guard. Not that it did him any good in the end..._

The distinct sound of the curtain being pulled back derailed Riku's train of thought and he was greeted by Doctor Mitchell and a nurse with a pill and a plastic cup of water.

"Take this."

Doing his best to keep steady, Riku took the pill and swallowed it down with the water before letting out a loud deep sigh of relief.

"So, can I go home?"

"No. We're going to keep you overnight for observation. It's just standard operating procedure and there's a good chance you'll be discharged tomorrow morning."

"Alright, I guess. Is there any way I can call my wife and let her know what's going on?"

"Sure. We'll call them and let them know what all is happening. The paramedics picked you up at Carnifex Abbey and it looks like you're the one who inherited it from your uncle. That place is a fairly well-known local landmark around here. The phone number for that address is fairly well-known. The nurse will show you to your room."

"Thanks, Doc."

Nightfall had arrived at Carnifex Abbey and the Count himself had finally awaken alongside his brides and his sons. The tall and foreboding undead noble was to meet Riku in the mansion's library, only to find it empty save for Kairi and Sora sitting in plush chairs.

"Count Sephiroth, thank God you're finally awake! Riku's in the hospital, he had an overdose on some kind of amphetamine type thing or something. Apparently, he took it accidentally not knowing what it actually was."

"Dear Lord, why did this have to happen today? Is he okay?"

"Yeah, he's fine. They gave him some pills to counter the effects and are keeping him overnight as a precaution so he can sleep it off. Sebastian and I are going to pick him up in the morning."

The Count sighed and facepalmed at the news. Taking what seemed to be a really forced and heavy deep breath, he gathered his composure before snapping his finger.

"Are you sure he's going to be there until the morning? We need to get to him now. His life is in danger!"

"Yeah. Wait, WHAT? What do you mean his life is in danger?"

"I think the people who murdered Vladimir are going to make a move on him. Did you ever stop and wonder why he kept chewable amphetamine in his kitchen pantry, a coffee maker on his nightstand and a machete by his bedroom door?"

"No. I just chalked it up to him being a weirdo like my hubby. Riku always told me that his family was full of eccentrics and the mentally ill."

"Towards the end of his life, Vladimir was paranoid and rightfully so. A very powerful enemy of the Order of the Dragon had been killing off several employees and associates of mine on both sides of the Atlantic and were issuing a bunch of threats. They eventually tracked my brother Vladimir to the Pittsburgh area and murdered him."

"If you don't mind me asking, just what is this Order of the Dragon?"

"We're a solemn society that was originally a Catholic knightly order in the Middle Ages. Now we are mostly focused in the corporate world and try to work with the new movers and shakers of the world to protect the interests of the Church and her followers. There's a lot of very old grudges between us and several other groups that go back centuries. It seems crazy but us old money European blue bloods are fucked up like that. Pride tends to fuck with us."

Seemingly out of nowhere, the purple-haired bride from the dinner last night was in the room as if she just materialized out of nowhere.

"Kairi, which hospital is he staying at?"

"Forbes Hospital, it's the one closest to this house."

The Count sternly turned his head towards the woman, who looked him in the eye and nodded in agreement.

"Ayane, I want you to head to Forbes Hospital and find out where Riku is being kept. I'll arrange for some private bodyguards to watch over him for the remainder of the night, but you may have to keep watch until they arrive."

"Yes, Master. I'll head over there right away."

As Ayane walked out of the room seemingly without making any kind of sound, Sora raised his hand like some high school jokester in the classroom.

"Umm, why is Riku's vampire LARP'er dad sending his creepy goth stepmom to watch over him? I don't want to try and insinuate anything here but I've seen enough hentai to know where this is probably going. Don't get me wrong here, but Riku's spoken for. I'm not sure if anyone told you this but me, him, and Kairi are only polyamorous by technicality. We got a history together and figured it would be best for all of us to live as a trio together."

His redheaded wife groaned and facepalmed while Sephiroth visibly cringed and looked at Sora with a mix of frustration and bewilderment over his ersatz son-in-law's baffling and kind of lewd yet silly comments.

"What the fuck is wrong with you, Sora? I wasn't going anywhere with that at all. Your husband is possibly in mortal danger and I'm sending Ayane over to watch him and make sure he's okay and will live to see tomorrow. If you had actually paid attention to what I said like a good little puppy dog, you would know that. Besides, I know all about about polyamory and the intricacies of plural relationships thanks to a little show called Three's Company."

"But why did you send one of your wives out there when you could go. You are his father!"

"Do you really expect a guy who's over six and a half feet tall and dresses like he was in a Tim Bradstreet drawing to just waltz into a hospital in the middle of the night after hours? Even if he's my son, there's certain things I can't do. But Ayane has a way with words and is a real people person, plus she knows psychology really well and could sweet talk her way into Fort Knox if she wanted."

Meanwhile, back at the hospital, Riku was sitting up in his hospital bed watching some reruns of Futurama on Adult Swim. He felt a lot more relaxed than before but was still not feeling sleepy though that probably had more to do with his long daytime nap from the medication he was given. His blood pressure and pulse seemed to be getting better when the nurse last checked it and he was sure he'd fall asleep again later in the night. Then the door opened and the lights were turned off and then back on.

"Nurse Joy, did I accidentally press the call button again? Sorry if I did...Hey wait a minute, what's going on? You're not the nurse! Are you even supposed to be here at this hour?"

It was fairly obvious that the person who walked into Riku's hospital room wasn't the nurse or even an employee of the hospital. He was a tall and thin man of no discernible age with long brown hair, a denim jacket, T-shirt, blue jeans, a Linkin Park T-shirt, and old dusty cowboy boots.

The man's jacket was adorned with buttons including one with a bright red eye against a black background, others included the sigil of Nyarlathotep, a hippie Peace symbol, a button that read "Make War, Not Love", a Satanic pentagram, and one button that just had a big middle finger on it.

"Who the fuck are you? Some kind of stoned hobo or college dropout? I mean, with all those intentionally inflammatory yet contradictory buttons on your jacket, did you get lost on your way to the local edgelord convention or something? All you need is a button for Shadow the Hedgehog and another one for Marilyn Manson and suddenly you'd have the whole set and get edgelord bingo!"

"Shut up, Riku. You don't know who I am, but I know who you are. You're the last living person in the House of Sephiroth. Well, there's also Count Dracula himself, but he's technically dead and not alive. You and your vampire buddies are going down. Same goes for your knocked up wifey and that spiky-headed fleabag boyfriend of yours."

"Who are you? Seriously. Did you kill my Uncle Vladimir? And what's with the fleabag comment? Yeah, Sora caught fleas that one time he was camping outdoors for the weekend up in Oregon. I mean, it's embarrassing but he did choose to spend two days in the woods sleeping under the stars. Plus it's not like we're any better. There was that time I got strep throat when we went to Gettysburg. And there was that one time Kairi came back from Canada with a butt worm. I told her not to eat an egg sandwich she bought from a vending machine in a truck stop bathroom but she wouldn't listen."

"Dude, TMI. Well, I suppose I owe you the answer to your first question. Name's Randy. Most folks just call me the Walkin' Dude or the Man in Black. As for your second question, maybe I did and maybe I didn't. What's it to you? Now, before you get all freaked out and start cowering in fear, I'm not going to hurt you. Well, not tonight anyway."

"Are you a vampire?"

"Nah. I'm on a whole 'nother level. Just figured I'd give you a fair warning that I'm making a ploy here for control of the Pittsburgh area and the surrounding towns and countryside along with all the secrets they hold. Now, I may seem like a "stoned college dropout on his way to an edgelord convention" but I've got a lot of friends in places high and low and many underlings who'll do my bidding. But I like a good challenge to add a little fun to all this. So I figured I'd stop by and let you know who you're fucking with. I'll see you around sometime..."

The man disappeared in a puff of black smoke, leaving Riku utterly shocked and totally speechless.

Meanwhile, at the nurses' station, Ayane walked up to the front desk to be greeted by a pink-haired woman in white scrubs and a nurse's cap.

"Ma'am, who are you and what are you doing here? Visiting hours are over."

"I'm looking for Riku Sephiroth. I heard he was being kept overnight for routine observation or something like that."

"Ma'am, you're gonna have to leave now before I call security. If you're here to pick him up, we can call you when he's discharged."

The purple-haired woman looked her right in the eye and held up her index and middle fingers close together before moving them in a slow side to side motion.

"You have been expecting me. I have a special pass from the head of security."

The nurse was totally stunned and could only respond in a monotone voice, not even blinking as she spoke.

"I have been expecting you. You have a special pass from the head of security."

"You will tell me where Riku is being kept and will give me the keys to get into the blood bank."

"Riku's in Room 221. The blood bank can only be accessed by typing in a password to unlock it electronically. The password is Woo in all uppercase letters. The one who oversees the blood transfusions is a huge Ric Flair fan."

"Excellent. Have some candy as a reward."

Ayane threw some packets of Sweet Tarts on the counter as she walked over to Room 221 and was greeted by the sight of Riku with a scared look on his face and his skin all pale and clammy.

"Riku, are you okay?"

"Can't sleep. Scary stoner hobo will kill me."

"Umm, what?"

"You're not going to believe this but I swear it's actually true. There was this guy named Randy who just waltzed into the room and implied he killed Uncle Vladimir and that he was coming for me and Sephiroth later on. And he knows that Seph's actually a vampire and the OG Count Dracula."

"A guy named Randy? Who knows me and Sephy are vampires? Was he a long-haired dude with a denim jacket and really bad blue jeans."

"Yeah. How'd you know?"

"Fuck, I knew it was him! Flagg has been gunning for the Order of the Dragon since before Washington was in the White House. Matter of fact, he's been one of our most dangerous enemies since before my Master was turned into one of the damned. That guy's like some kind of demon wizard or something. He just came out of time and nobody really knows what his endgame is and who he works for, if anyone."

Alright, if I know what Flagg's planning, you should be in the clear for tonight. Tomorrow, we'll have Sebastian pick you up in the morning as soon as you're discharged. He'll be driving the Lamborghini. Just try to relax and know that you've got a lot of support from us and also from Kairi, Sora, and Sora's family if what Master Vladislav and Brother Itachi told me is true. For now, just get some sleep."

Ayane gently kissed Riku on the cheek and looked into his eyes, making him fall into a deep but comfortable sleep for the remainder of the night...


	14. To New Beginnings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As Riku returns home to Carnifex Abbey, he finally prepares for a new life

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry I had been gone so long. Real life's been pretty tough these past few weeks but now I'm back and I'm ready to get the story back on track. Yeah, this story's pretty much dovetailed straight into cringe dramedy but eh, I'm writing this for dumb fun and it's for enjoyment. Even if I'm a bad writer, at least I'm having fun.
> 
> Anyway, enjoy this new chapter as a holiday gift from me.
> 
> Io Saturnalia!

**Forbes Hospital**

**Monroeville, Pennsylvania**

Morning hit Riku like a freight train as he sprung up from his bed, groaning in pain from the sharp soreness in his back and the rough cotton-mouthed dryness in his throat. Yawning and stretching, he slowly stepped out of the hospital bed and stumbled his way towards the sink as he tried to regain his composure and fully wake up. Fumbling around as he tried to rub his eyes with one hand while reaching for those disposable paper cups with the other, the young man was still trying to process what all had happened in the past few days.

After downing several cups of water, Riku took a deep breath and began to talk to himself. He'd occasionally do that if he knew nobody was around. It wasn't meant as a "hearing voices" crazy person kind of way. For him, it was a case of thinking out loud. Kind of dumb, but it helped clear his mind more easily and process his thoughts on heavy situations like this.

"Alright. So, I found out that not only was my last living relative brutally murdered by some long-haired psycho but that vampires are real, I'm the heir to some old medieval Catholic order with ties to the wealthy upper echelons of society, the man who murdered my uncle is going to try and kill me, I'm now also a billionaire apparently with all the stressors and complications that entails, and my wife is pregnant too. This has to be some kind of dream, right? But if it was a dream, I would've probably woken up by now. Well, let's just take this one day at a time and keep calm as best I can. Not much else I can do right now."

After a quick shower and his morning medications, Riku was formally discharged and had been picked up by Sebastian, just as Ayane had told him last night. His mind was so overburdened with depressive dread that he didn't even notice or care that he was riding shotgun in a high-end Lamborghini of all things and that the weather outside was bright and sunny. Riku's mind was somewhere else, in a dark and foggy cloud. Hopefully, he could sleep it off.

Later that night, he awoke from his nap and remembered what Sephiroth told him the night before he had his near-miss overdose. That he had to be dressed nice and looking respectful for some kind of orientation ceremony. Once more showering, styling his hair, and then putting on a black suit and tie with a white dress shirt, the silver-haired man walked down to the same parlor where he saw Vladimir's video will on a console from the future.

Everyone was there. Count Sephiroth, his Brides and his Sons, Kairi, Sora, Sebastian, even his friend Axel, his older brother Cloud, and his twin siblings Roxas and Xion. All were dressed in formal or semi-formal attire and sat on the various couches and chairs in full attention save for Sephiroth himself, who was standing up in front of the marble hearth of a fireplace.

"There's the man of the hour! Alright, Riku. It is time that you are to be officially inducted into the Order of the Dragon. But before the ceremony can begin, I'm gonna come clean to those of you in the room who don't know the full story. Yes, I am an actual vampire and yes, I am the real Count Dracula. Me being Riku's long-lost dad was a cover story since I didn't know who all I could trust when I arrived here in the States. But I can read minds and do so at will and not all of my kind have that ability. I know Kairi won't spill that secret and neither will Sora or his own brethren. My three Brides and my three Sons are also vampires as well, and no they are not my wives or my adopted sons. Son and Bride are their titles."

The red-haired mortal woman raised her hand and asked "Wait, titles? What do you mean by that? Is that like a special thing for vampires?"

"Sort of. The Order of the Dragon has several titles and ranks, some are open to all members and others are only open to specific members who meet certain conditions. To be a Bride of Dracula or a Son of Dracula, you must be a fully sworn member of the Order of the Dragon for at least three years, you cannot be a member of the clergy, and you must be fully vetted by the one who holds the title of Dracula. To achieve the rank, you are turned into a vampire yourself, as the title of Dracula only belongs to the highest ranking member of the Order who belongs to the armies of the living dead."

"So, is tonight's ceremony meant to turn me into a vampire?"

"Not necessarily. You're going to be officially inducted into the Order of the Dragon but we can hold off on your turning if you want, just as we had initially discussed. I just wanted to make sure we're clear on that. You were pretty delirious when we first met. Feeding from you and then giving you some of my blood as a mild sedative can mess with people's head."

"Wait, was that why you kissed me that night? Looking back, I always felt that was really weird given the fact you're not only NOT in a relationship with me, but also a blood relative and a long dead one at that. I figured it was some creepy European thing or something."

"Nah. Vampire blood has intoxicating effects when consumed by humans and can act as a mild sedative, especially after someone has been fed on. After I drank some of your blood, I bit my lip to draw just a little bit of blood and then kissed you. I was hoping my blood would help calm you down and prevent a panic attack or a nervous breakdown. Your mind was racing and full of dread, probably due to the unusual circumstances of Vladimir's death and funeral. Sorry for drugging you like that. Figured you needed something to calm you down mentally and sleep easy that night."

"Eh, that's still kind of creepy but at least you were trying to help me out in this situation as opposed to some fucked up ulterior motive. Apology accepted, I guess."

The Count looked over the room and without saying a word, held his right hand up to his heart in a closed fist and nodded. Sebastian immediately stood up, as did the Sons and Brides of Dracula, all of them standing in unison.

"Now, before Riku is finally sworn into the Order of the Dragon, does anyone else have anything to say? Speak now or forever hold your peace."

Kairi and Sora both stood up, both of them kissing Riku and hugging him closely. Sora then looked up at Sephiroth and walked up to him, whispering in his ear.

"You said you can read minds at will so you probably know my secret as well. Is it okay if I tell him?"

"Yes, you may."

The spiky-haired brunette nodded and walked back into the center of the parlor room. He raised his hand up and said "Okay, I have one announcement for Riku and Kairi before the ceremony since everyone's spilling their secrets. Now that Sephiroth's come out of the coffin, I'll come out of the den. Not only do vampires exist, but so do werewolves. I know this because I am one, as are my brothers and sister and my best friend Axel. I'm not even being a goofball smartass either. I'm being dead serious here. The Strife family are a werewolf family and we belong to the same pack. I didn't want to say anything because I was worried you guys wouldn't understand and thought I went off the deep end or something. I hope you guys aren't mad at me."

"Dude, I'm not mad at you. I just found out vampires are real, so it'd make sense that werewolf packs would too. What do you think of this, Kairi?"

"I'm not mad about it either. Actually, I think it's kind of cool to have a werewolf boyfriend, a newly minted billionaire husband and aristocratic vampire in-laws. It's like something out of a dark fantasy novel and I unironically like that."

"Alright, Riku. Are you ready for the initiation ceremony?"

Riku said nothing but looked at Sephiroth and just nodded in reverent agreement before following him and the others out of the parlor.


End file.
